


Red as Blood

by hdyrg66



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Canon Compliant, Feelings Realization, Hurt/Comfort, Hux is Confused, Kylo is hurt, M/M, Misunderstandings, Or not, Seeing Color AU, Soulmate AU, Starkiller Base Rescue, ambiguous ending?, black and white world, color soulmates au, soulbond, tbh its up to you
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-23
Updated: 2018-10-07
Packaged: 2019-07-15 18:50:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16069133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hdyrg66/pseuds/hdyrg66
Summary: Hux had never seen the color red.Well, he had technically glimpsed red, yes, but he hadn’t seen it. Red was just another shade of grey to him— another shade of grey to him and all the rest of the people in the galaxy who had yet to find their soulmate.It wasn’t until the day that Starkiller Base would be destroyed when he would realize how frightening red actually was.





	1. Chapter 1

 

 

 

Hux had never seen the color red.

 

Well, he had technically glimpsed red, yes, but he hadn’t _seen_ it.

 

Hux knew from his identification files that his hair was red. Ginger, to be exact. A rare coloring inherited from his father, they said. He wouldn’t know. He looked at himself every day in the mirror, yet did not possess the ability to distinguish such things. Red was just another shade of grey to him— another shade of grey to him and all the rest of the people in the galaxy who had yet to find their soulmate.

 

In a galaxy practically infinite, the probability of finding your soulmate was slim to none. Trillions upon trillions of different beings walked within the galaxy’s large confines, rendering almost all attempts to find said soulmate fruitless. However, there were still people who scoured the galaxy to its farthest reaches, pursuing that one in a quadrillion chance. Those same people died colorless and forgotten on unfamiliar planets, their lives wasted on something no one could fully understand.

 

On the rare occasion that one did happen to find their soulmate, it was only by pure and undignified chance.

 

Despite this, in no way did Hux find the idea of never discovering his soulmate dispiriting. Approximately 89% of the entire galaxy population never gained color vision. There was no need to be upset over something that would factually never come to be for most, including himself. The world worked just fine in black and white as it did in color. In fact, Hux found that seeing his life painted only in shades of grey maintained a simplistic beauty in such an overcomplicated time. In this way, everything was easy and absolute. Never oversaturated, never overwhelmed. The world was unadorned and unembellished, the way that it should be.

 

So no, Hux might not have been able to see red, but he didn’t have to see it to know it was a powerful color.

 

Bold. Strong. Threatening. The perfect color for order.

 

It wasn’t until the day that Starkiller Base would be destroyed when he realized just how frightening red actually was.

  
  


—

  
  


Hux’s boots slipped in the snow, the ground rumbling dangerously with every step. In the distance, he could hear the sound of whole trees snapping in two and the very foundation of the planet crumbling.

 

Usually, Hux could keep himself calm in intense situations, he had been specifically trained for it after all, but no amount of training could have prepared him for this. He had spent years of his life building Starkiller from the ground up; from first idealistic conception to beautiful execution, he saw it through. And as fate would have it, he would also get to see its destruction firsthand.

 

He should have been on the Finalizer right now. He should have been commanding the bridge, gathering resources to track down the Resistance scum who had dared trifle with the First Order. He _should_ have been doing what a General does, but instead, he was here, on a crazed dash across his own creation’s surface as it disintegrated beneath his feet.

 

At this point, everyone else was either off the planet or dead besides him, his shuttle’s small crew, and Ren.

 

_Ren._

 

 _He_ was the reason why Hux was here. The madman had somehow gotten trapped in the middle of the forest and now Hux was the one tasked with his retrieval. So much casualty and devastation had happened in one day, was _still_ happening, yet Kylo fucking Ren always took precedent.

 

As much as Hux wanted to leave the imbecile, if he returned to Snoke without him, he would not live to see much longer than the Knight himself. The Supreme Leader’s commands had been brief, but the actual threat behind his words had been clear: he either returned with Ren safely or died trying.

 

With only mere minutes left before the planet imploded, those two options burned in Hux’s mind, hurrying him along his path. He had no reservations about death, it was inevitable after all, but he would be damned if he was going to die today, risking his life for Kylo Ren.

 

Looking down at his datapad, Hux tried to wipe away the flurrying snow to see the screen. It had been a wise decision to place a tracker in Kylo’s belt, without it he would not have stood a chance to find the man. The display showed Kylo to be just up ahead, Hux hoped for his own sake that it was right.

 

After trekking several more feet forward, a dark, most definitely _human_ figure could be seen lying in the snow in the near distance.

 

“Ren!” Pocketing his datapad, Hux rushed forward, barely managing not to fall, “Ren! Get up! We— oh _god_...”

 

Upon closer look, it was indeed the Knight, except in a much different shape than the last time Hux had seen him.

 

“What the fuck! _What the hell did you do, Ren!_ What the hell did you do…”

 

Hux dropped to his knees beside Kylo’s spread form, the cold instantly soaking through to his skin. Snoke had told him that Kylo needed retrieving but had neglected to say anything about that fact that the man would also be severely injured and unconscious.

 

Quickly surveying the scene, Hux had to grit his teeth. He was by no means squeamish, but the sight in front of him was abhorrent. It seemed Kylo had partaken in some sort of fight, and by the ghastly extent of his injuries, lost horribly. His shoulder and upper chest were torn in thick shreds, arm lying at an awkward angle. A gash was on his thigh, as well as a particularly large wound that encompassed his left side torso. Most notably, Hux’s eyes were drawn to the burning line that diagonally bisected Kylo’s face, his features grisly marred.

 

All this couldn’t have happened any more than a few minutes ago, Hux surmised. The copper tinge of blood and awful stench of burnt flesh was still sharp in the air.

 

Pulling out his comm, Hux swiftly barked orders, “I’ve found Ren. Coordinates are 49° 28.96, 119° 36.42 near the East Ridge. Bring a stretcher at once and prepare for medical assistance onboard,” He didn’t wait for a response before tucking the device back away.

 

The shuttle would only be a couple minutes, but Hux knew he couldn’t just sit and wait. Kylo’s condition was certainly near the point of threatening. There would be no point in rescuing him from immediate planetary implosion only for him die from already sustained injuries. If there was still any active bleeding, Hux had to stop it.

 

Thankfully for silver linings, it seemed as though the wounds across Kylo’s leg, shoulder, and face were already cauterized. Hux didn’t have to be a force user to know that a lightsaber had undoubtedly been the cause of such lesions. However, the wound at Kylo’s side was not of the same origin. The snow surrounding the injured side was bathed in a deep pool of grey, looking almost black in the fading light.

 

Shifting over, Hux carefully placed his hands on the wound.

 

_“Shit.”_

 

It was quite deep and bleeding profusely. It wasn’t something he could simply stop without any supplies.

 

Hux pulled his hands back.

 

Kylo had not made a single sound nor movement since he had gotten there. He was still alive though, his chest rising every so slightly with breath, yet gauging by the sheer amount of darkness that already painted the snow, he might not be for much longer.

 

“Ren, can you hear me? Ren!” Hux tried, attempting to garner any sort of response, but the man remained still and silent.

 

Shakily bringing his arm up, Hux pressed his gloved fingers to Kylo’s neck, right over where he knew the jugular vein was. He held his breath for a few seconds, waiting for the familiar thrum of a pulse. He felt nothing.

 

“Goddammit!” He cursed, taking his right hand to his mouth. He bit the tip of the black leather glove, yanking it hastily off with his teeth.

 

The moment he replaced his newly ungloved fingers onto Kylo’s icy neck, his eyesight exploded into color.

 

Gasping, Hux snatched his hand away as if it had been burned and fell backward into the wet snow.

 

 _“What the_ **_—_ ** _”_

 

The black and white world he had lived in for the past 34 years had utterly disappeared. In its place was now a wide variety of vivid color, the likes of which he had never expected to see.

 

Head whipping from side to side, Hux’s eyes darted around madly, trying to take it all in. Everything around him was the same, yet all entirely new.

 

Blinding white and shining bright blue radiated from the snow. Differing shades of crisp browns lined the trees. Dark slate grey came up from the rocks and cracking foundation of the ground. The deep blue of the night sky was illuminated by fiery orange flames in the distance. His own boots were a shining black. One of his hands was pale pink, the other, still gloved, was drenched with dark red; the same dark red that was smeared on Kylo’s neck and spilled from his side, staining the snow. There was so much of it— _too_ much, too vital, too _real_.

 

Hux clamped his eyes shut, squeezing tight to fight against nausea that threatened to rise in his stomach. The black beneath his eyelids provided a blissful haven away from the assaulting colors. He vehemently willed them to go away, but when he reopened his eyes the overwhelming hues were still very much present.

 

With his senses at war, Hux focused on Kylo, the man lying just as still as the dead in his crumpled black robes.

 

The utter shock of the situation had made his brain slow to realize the exact meaning as to why he could suddenly see in brilliant color. That was, until now.

 

With the world quite literally shattering around him, Hux had found his one in a quadrillion chance, a chance that countless beings within the galaxy would kill to have: he had found his soulmate.

 

_His soulmate was Kylo Ren._

 

The irony was not lost on him. In Hux’s addled mind, he couldn’t stop the hysterical laughter that bubbled up in his throat.

 

Out of all the people in the galaxy, it had to be _him_.

 

Picking himself up out of the snow, Hux leaned back over the Knight. If it wasn’t for the jarring injuries, it would simply appear as if he was just sleeping. Either way, he was none the wiser to what was happening. Hux almost envied him in that moment.

 

Just then, the rumble of an engine approached. The escape shuttle had arrived, hopefully just in time to save them both. The entire planet was quaking with rupture; it wouldn’t be long now.

 

Hux stood, wiping the snow from his pants to at least try to maintain some sort of dignity in front of his people. The shuttle descended from the sky, making a much more quick and haphazard landing than what was typically normal. Safety protocols were not exactly a top priority when one’s life was on the line.

 

Dusty white flurries kicked up as the back ramp to the shuttle lowered, hitting the ground with a loud metallic clang that resonated across the empty forest. Immediately, two stormtroopers ran down the length of the ramp, followed a moment later by a hovering stretcher, just as Hux had ordered.

 

As they approached the General, they seemed to slow down. Hux eyed them warily as they then came to a hesitant stop in front of him. It seemed, unconsciously, he had moved to position himself between the troopers and Kylo. He was blocking their path, stopping them from advancing any further towards the injured Knight.

 

Hux swiftly stepped back, inwardly cursing himself for wasting time. _What the fuck was he doing?_

 

The troopers proceeded to either side of Kylo, preparing to move him. Hux didn’t need to watch this, it was a task that could surely be handled without his supervision, but something inside of him prevented his feet from moving. He had to make sure Kylo made it safely on board.

 

As the troopers gripped Kylo, Hux tensed. He stood watching in unexpected anxiety as the Knight’s limp body was lifted into the air. They moved quickly, adjusting to place him on the stretcher when a sudden, all-encompassing quiver erupted from the unstable planet’s core.

 

“Careful!” Hux shouted, a second too late. The troopers stumbled and lost their grasp on Kylo.

 

As Kylo’s body dropped, his dead weight falling hard onto the stretcher, Hux’s vision abruptly blurred. At that moment, the brand new colors of his life disappeared and the world before his eyes returned to dull shades of grey. A brief second lasted a lifetime. When he blinked, the colors were back.

 

It was so quick, almost as if nothing had happened at all, yet Hux’s heart had come to a slamming stop. The situation was far graver than he had first presumed— Kylo was truly hanging on the very brink of death.

 

“Go!” Hux screamed, sparking the troopers into fast action. Not a second more could afford to be wasted, not when Kylo was dying right in front of them.

 

The group sprinted towards the ship, stretcher in tow. As they loaded up the ramp, Hux stayed a pace behind, making himself the final person to board. In a very symbolic twist, he would be the last person alive to ever set foot on Starkiller.

 

The sudden urge to turn and take one final look at the planet before its ultimate eradication from the galaxy was strong, but Hux purposely resisted. That old life of his was gone, crumbling into nothing at that very moment. However, his new one was right in front of him, fighting for his life in screaming color. Hux couldn’t change his past, but he could protect his future.

 

With that last thought, the ramp closed and they were lifted into the air.

 

The shuttle space itself was small, only meant for quick transports and just barely big enough to fit the 3 men and Kylo on the stretcher.

 

“Get him immediate medical attention!” Hux shouted, feeling his body fill with more fear than he would have liked to admit. The troopers relayed the command quickly and retrieved the onboard medical droid. The droid certainly wasn’t ideal and nowhere near sufficient to treat the Knight’s extensive wounds, but it was all they had until they reached The Finalizer. There they would have a real medbay, filled with bacta tanks and doctors available at hand. They just had to keep Kylo alive long enough to get there first.

 

Hux couldn’t take his eyes away as the droid began to assess Kylo, poking and prodding mechanically at his wounds. He stood next to the stretcher rigidly, eardrums pounding with the rush of blood. Kylo looked scarily pale under the artificial lights, the pallid contrasting horribly with the black of his clothes and red of torn flesh. Despite how awful it was, Hux knew that as long as he could still see the faint ivory and dark maroon tones, everything was alright.

 

They weren’t on the shuttle for too much longer, but to Hux, it felt like hours. A few times he could have sworn he saw the edges of his vision creeping in, yet couldn’t quite tell whether he was imagining it or not.

 

When they finally made it to The Finalizer, safely docking in the ship hangar, Kylo was raced off the shuttle. Hux was hot on his heels, following all the way down to the medbay. As soon as they were through the doors, the doctors swarmed and the injured Knight was pushed towards the back operation rooms. Hux was just about to follow him in there as well when a woman stepped in front of his path.

 

“You can’t go back there, Sir,” She heeded. Hux knew that the woman was just doing her job, but it felt it as though it were a personal attack.

 

“Let me through, goddammit,” He growled, looking her dead in the eye, “I am the General of this ship and you will allow me to pass!”

 

Surprisingly, the woman held strong under his murderous gaze.

 

“Only medical staff is allowed beyond this point, it’s far too unsafe. I’m sorry, Sir, but I cannot let you through.”

 

Hux moved his eyes over her shoulder to watch helplessly as Kylo and the group of doctors’ disappeared around the corner.

 

Something inside of him seemed to break at that. Although he had no real control over Kylo’s condition before, he certainly didn’t now. He had no way of knowing what was about to happen in that operating room. Were Kylo’s injuries too critical? Had he already lost too much blood? Was it too late to save him?

 

The woman seemed to sense Hux’s confused and terrified state before he even realized it himself.

 

“Everything will be okay,” She spoke up softly, assuring, “He’s in good hands.”

 

Hux’s eyes shot back to her in internal alarm, only to find that she was already looking at him, a knowing, almost _pitying_ expression on her face. He couldn’t stand it, not here, not right now. He had to leave before anyone else saw him like this. Something had come over him. Something was not right.

Biting his tongue, Hux stifled his expression into one that came naturally to him: anger and contempt. It was the perfect facade to mask any and all vulnerability.

 

“Alert me the moment he’s out,” he gritted before sharply turning on his heel.

 

It took everything he had to walk away. Some unseen force within his mind was screaming at him to stay; stay and protect Kylo. It was utterly absurd. The First Order— _his_ First Order— had just been dealt a crippling blow, thousands upon thousands of lives and precious resources were lost on Starkiller Base. In the grand scheme of things, Kylo Ren’s life was practically inconsequential. So why did he feel as though he was leaving a part of himself behind on that operating table?

 

Pushing away those thoughts as best as he could, Hux tried to gather himself back into his confident and poised General persona. He couldn’t allow these things to shake him, not when so many people were relying on him. With Kylo out of commission and Snoke hiding behind a big red curtain, it was up to him to pick up the reins and lead the regime.

 

Soulmate or not, the First Order had to come first. Hux would just have to trust that Kylo would be okay.

 

With the medbay doors closing behind him, Hux let himself be comforted by the sick thought that if Kylo did happen to die on the operating table, at least he would be the very first to know.

  
  


—

  


 


	2. Chapter 2

 

 

 

 

Later, Hux was finally filled in on the messy details of that night.

 

The scavenger. The traitor. Han Solo. That blasted Wookie. They had set explosives, blowing up Starkiller’s oscillator and ran. Kylo, the reckless idiot, had purposely gone after them, engaging in a duel; a duel that he lost. The Master of the Knights of Ren had been defeated by a girl who had never wielded a lightsaber and he was paying the consequences.

 

Against Hux’s better will, he had been spending all of his available time in the medbay, watching diligently over Kylo’s recovery— the process was far from pretty. From emergency surgery to full-bodied bacta tank immersion, it was some long hours before Kylo was determined to be out of critical condition. Even then, it was unanimously agreed that it was best for him to be kept in an induced sleep for a couple of days. It was no secret the man tended to be quite volatile, they couldn’t risk him re-injuring himself so quickly after treatment.

 

Hux shouldn’t have been so concerned, he had enough problems as it was. Between scrambling together what was left of the Order and tracking down the Resistance, he was being stretched thin. For the first time in his life he had looked at himself in full color only to loathe what he saw in the reflection. His skin was white as paper, pulled tight over gaunt cheekbones. Dark purple bruises circled his eyes and his hair hung lifeless in dull orange. He overcompensated for that last problem with hair gel, but the rest could not be fixed. Unlike Kylo, he could not be mended with simple bacta and bandages, yet that did not stop his feet from carrying him to the medbay without fail.

 

As Kylo laid unconscious, Hux sat bedside, silently taking in the colors that he never knew existed before. From the deep rose of pouted lips, to the warm beige of skin, streaming hair that wasn’t quite black, just varying shades of dark brown, and the angry pink of a newly scarred face, there was an abundance of beautiful hues to be observed. Each one seemed to resonate a deeper feeling within Hux’s being— feelings that he could hardly pinpoint.

 

He and Kylo had been in such close proximity for 5 years, neither any wiser that their soulmate was only a layer of clothing away. All those years working side by side, arguing, fighting, even wishing the other’s demise at some points, and yet the possibility had never stood to cross Hux’s mind once. But why should it have had? The two of them had never gotten along. They were rivals, despising each other from the very beginning. The chance of them being soulmates was a baffling joke that could not have been predicted.

 

If someone had dared to tell Hux that Kylo Ren was his soulmate just a few days earlier, he would have had them demoted. He had never cared for Kylo, had never wanted to be associated with him… but everything had changed the moment their skin touched. Gaining color vision was the most obvious adjustment, however, it went well beyond that. There was something inside of Hux that now ached with extraordinary need, as if a gaping hole had opened in his chest. It was unlike anything he had ever experienced, and his mind was at war with itself, plagued by questions he did not have the answer to.

 

Did Kylo know just how incredibly close to death he had come? Did he know he had a soulmate? What color were his eyes? Did he know that Hux was here right now? Did he care? Hell, _could he even see the same colors Hux did?_

 

It was rare, yet not entirely unheard of for a soulbond to be unreciprocated. One poor soul could gain color vision after touch, only to heartbreakingly find out that the other person did not share the same effect. Perhaps his situation was one of those scarce few—perhaps it could be a blessing in disguise.

 

For as long as he could remember, Hux had been dead set on living in black and white, unbothered by a soulmate. If this situation came to be true, he would still be free from the soulmate part, but would also get to reap rewards of color. From this view, Hux was only benefitting. All the colors of the universe without the hassle of a soulbond; what more could someone ask for?

 

Hux couldn’t help the thought that someone to share it with was greater.

 

It didn’t matter what he thought in the end, though. Hux didn’t have to be a force user to know that it would never work out between him and Kylo. They were too different, too volatile; two trains speeding at high velocity along different tracks, bound to crash and burn. Just because a soulbond was made did not mean that it had to be acted upon— or _should_ be acted upon.

 

They were better off apart. They were better off _alone_.

 

Hux made a decision in that moment. If Kylo awoke to see colors as well, he would him tell the truth— it would be immensely unfair not to. Usually, Hux did not deal in fairness, but as Kylo was unconscious during the pivotal discovery, he would not have any clue as to who his soulmate really was. For all he would know, any of the assisting stormtroopers or doctors who had handled him could have been the one to grant him color. That thought did not sit particularly well with Hux; _he_ was Kylo’s soulmate, not just any lacking being. Through pure selfishness, he wanted the Knight to know it was him.

 

However, if Kylo awoke to shades of grey just as any other person… Hux would not utter a word. He couldn’t risk the other man holding it over his head. The less Kylo knew, the better. And maybe in time, Hux would be able to forget about it as well.

 

On that final note, Hux took his sign to leave, painstakingly tearing his eyes away from Kylo’s sleeping form and forcing himself back to duty. The next day, it would not be an unconscious Kylo he would return to.

 

Whilst on the bridge, he received a comm from the medbay informing him that the Knight was awake. An initial instinct to immediately dash to see the man shot through his veins, but Hux forcibly quelled it. Kylo would undoubtedly be disoriented, if not extremely angry. It would be in no ways beneficial to have Hux be the very first to see him. As far as everyone else was concerned, Hux was the unafflicted General; it had to stay that way on the surface, no matter how untrue.

 

Several hours passed by at an agonizing crawl before Hux decided he could not wait much longer. He could barely focus on his tasks at hand, thrumming with restless energy. With a final bark to his confused officer’s, he gave away command of the bridge and rushed as quickly as he could down into the bowels of the ship.

 

When he entered the medbay, several pairs of eyes were instantly on him. A group of personnel had gathered near the door, seemingly having awaited the General’s definite arrival. Hux quickly composed himself as to not let it show just how hurried his path was. Not a word was spoken to him as he made his way through, but the heavy weight of stares could be felt on his back. Just as he was about to enter Kylo’s room though, the door slid open and closed, a male doctor exiting. Hux stopped himself short, but the man was looking down at his datapad, a perturbed look upon his face. He didn’t notice Hux until a moment too late, visibly startling.

 

“Ah, Sir!” The man gasped, trying quickly to gather himself in front of his General, “I’m sorry, I didn't see you. Is there anything I can help you with?”

 

As the opportunity presented itself, Hux decided to take it. It certainly couldn’t hurt to have some sort of idea as to what he was about to encounter. Inclining his head towards the back room, Hux asked cautiously, “How is he?”

 

“Lord Ren is…” The man seemed to weigh what he was about to say carefully, as if afraid to upset Hux, “...as fine as can be expected. He had some questions when he awoke. After we informed him of everything that happened he...destroyed a medical droid. He’s calmed down a bit since then, but he is still in some pain. Overall, I would say he is recovering quite well considering the extent of his injuries.”

 

Hux nodded slowly. The man was obviously anxious about Kylo’s destruction costs, yet in the grand scheme of events, a meager medical droid was perhaps the least of Hux’s worries. If anything, they should be glad that it was _only_ a droid.

 

Hux was just about to dismiss the man, but hesitation grabbed him, there was still something he had to know.

 

“Did he mention anything about his eyesight, by chance?”

 

“Uh,” The man fumbled, “I don’t believe so, Sir… Should he have?”

 

Hux felt as though a lump of lead had just dropped into his stomach. “No,” He snapped louder than necessary, “That will be all, Doctor. Make sure that I am not disturbed.”

 

Hux didn’t wait for a response before stepping up to the door, but the man’s footsteps made a hasty retreat.

 

Staring at the dark grey of the durasteel, Hux had to take a deep, centering breath. This would be the first time he would talk to Kylo since Starkiller’s destruction, the first time he would knowingly talk to his _soulmate;_ a feat he had quite literally never expected to happen. It didn’t feel real.

 

An uncharacteristic tremble was running through Hux, when he looked down his hands were shaking. _Coward._

 

Clenching his hands into fists, Hux straightened himself up, arranging his face into an unreadable mask. There was no prolonging the inevitable. No matter what happened in that room, nothing was going to change. Without any further delay, he pressed the wall keypad allowing the door to slide open and stepped in.

 

Although the room was entirely the same from the day before, Hux felt as though he was entering foreign territory. The air even seemed to be thicker, heavy with an unknown force that thrummed through its space. Undoubtedly, the source from which the tension occurred was sitting on the medical cot, his back turned to Hux, but very much _conscious_.

 

Hux made to move towards the man, but suddenly his voice broke the air.

 

“I thought I told you to leave me alone.”

 

The threat was spoken lowly, hoarse with disuse, halting Hux in his spot a more than amiable distance away. Hux narrowed his eyes at the man’s back.

 

“I must not have gotten the memo.”

 

The sharp response was not what the other man had been expected as his head whipped around quickly. For the first time since before Starkiller was destroyed, Kylo and Hux locked eyes. Hux felt something within his heart clench seeing the Knight awake and breathing with full life.

 

Surprise was evident on Kylo’s face for about a split second before it dissolved into a dark scowl.

 

“I thought you were the doctor, they’ve been hounding me all day,” Kylo muttered in explanation, shifting himself. The movement drew Hux’s eyes downward to the fact that he was shirtless, yet his torso was covered in enough black bandages to make the opposite seem true.

 

Hux hummed, “Maybe you should listen to them, they’re the ones keeping you alive after all.”

 

“I’m fine,” Kylo said defensively, “Why are you even here anyway?”

 

Hux ignored the question, instead, posed one of his own, “Ren, do you know how much trouble you caused? Not just for the Order, but for me as well?”

 

Kylo glanced away, his cheeks filling with a soft pink of chagrin that Hux would have never noticed before.

 

Despite everything that had happened, Hux couldn’t help the anger that bubbled up in his veins. In the span of one single day, Kylo had managed to turn his life into an utter living hell. His life’s creation was destroyed, his regime and reputation were damaged, and his mind, heart and soul had never been more confused— all thanks to Kylo.

 

“You don’t know what happened!” Kylo spat back. Always managing to get beneath the other’s skin, they were still the bickering General and Knight who couldn’t stand each other— some things never changed.

 

“Don’t I?” Hux scoffed, “I know you allowed the scavenger and traitor to escape. You let Solo and his Wookie come in and blow up the place while you were busy chasing them! You tracked them out into the woods on a madman’s mission and lost to an untrained girl! If it wasn’t for me, you would have—”

 

In his tirade, Hux had failed to see Kylo trembling, a few items in the room shaking with him until he exploded.

 

“I killed him!” He interrupted with a shout, “I looked in him in the eye and ignited my saber through his chest!”

 

Any fire in Hux’s blood ran ice cold, seizing him in his spot, “Who?”

 

“Han Solo! My—” Kylo’s voice broke before he could utter the last word. He didn’t have to.

 

“Your father,” Hux finished for him, grim realization dawning. So he hadn’t known the full story after all. Everything was making uneasy sense now.

 

“You don’t know what it’s like…” Kylo whispered in between heaving breaths. His head was down, his messy dark hair obscuring most of his face.

 

Hux paused, deliberating with himself before he spoke, “Actually, I would.”

 

Kylo turned back once more to Hux, looking at him through his hair, “What do you mean?”

 

“I killed my father, as well. I had his death arranged by Captain Phasma…” Hux trailed off. He had never spoken that detail out loud to anymore besides Phasma herself. The confession left him feeling odd, but he didn’t regret it. He couldn’t have kept it to himself in that moment, not when Kylo was breaking apart in front of him. He had to let the other man he wasn't alone.

 

Kylo stared at him for a few beats, “Does it get easier?”

 

“Yes,” Hux answered strongly and without hesitation. He had no use of the Force, but mentally willed his word to get through to Kylo. It got better, it just took time.

 

Kylo nodded slowly, not saying anything. Silence fell between them and it wasn’t bad, just… different. Him and Kylo had never had a moment like this before. Just seconds before they had been screaming at each other and now it was a moment of comfortable understanding. Hux’s hands were sweating in his gloves, this was not the way he had expected the conversation to turn. Perhaps he shouldn’t have said anything at all. Kylo was undoubtedly confused; it wasn’t like Hux at all to console someone, let alone _him_.

 

Hux shifted on his feet, turning his body towards the door, “I should return—”

 

“Wait!” Kylo reached out his arm quickly as if to stop Hux, but then suddenly winced in pain. Immediately, he slumped slightly forward, covering his injured side protectively.

 

Hux froze in his spot, his heart jumping in his chest, “What’s wrong?”

 

“Nothing,” Kylo gritted through his teeth, “Just hand me the medicine over there.”

 

“Of course,” Hux replied, walking quickly towards a small table on the other side of the room which Kylo gestured towards. Lying on the table were two different sets of pills, “Which ones?”

 

“The blue ones.”

 

Hux’s hand faltered.

 

_Oh._

 

The Knight had not realized his slip-up until it had already left his mouth. In great alarm he snapped his head over to Hux, only to find himself even more shocked as the General complied with his answer. Without any further explanation, Hux swiftly picked up the blue pills and walked them back.

 

The silence was thick enough to choke on as Hux offered out the pills. The other man’s burning gaze could be felt on his face but he refused to meet it. Finally, Kylo reached up to shakily take the blue capsules. Hux quickly dropped them in his palm before their hands could make any contact.

 

Stepping away, Hux went to the bedside chair he had previously occupied the day before and sat down. His heart was pounding and his legs felt shaky. There were no more doubts to be had.

 

After a few seconds of tense stillness, Kylo cleared his throat, “You can see color.”

 

It wasn’t a question.

 

“And so can you,” Hux replied straightly.

 

“I couldn’t until… I woke up. I don’t know how it happened. I couldn’t before—”

 

“It was baffling for me too.”

 

“So, we are…” Kylo’s voice faded away.

 

“Yes,” Hux confirmed with a sigh, “You and I are—”

 

“Soulmates.” Kylo finished.

 

A heavy note of finality hung in the air. Kylo didn’t feel the need to question Hux. He could sense it was the truth, almost as if a puzzle piece had finally fallen into place.

 

“When I found you on Starkiller, I had to remove my glove to… check if you were still alive,” Hux explained slowly, trying to push away the images of screaming red that came to his mind, “The moment my fingers came into contact with your skin, well, _this_ happened,” He gestured at the room in color around them.

 

Kylo opened his mouth, but then closed it, a thinking expression taking over his features. Before he could say what could only be an immediate denial of the bond, Hux decided he would do it first.

 

“There’s no law that states that soulmates have to be together. You know as well as I do that we would make for a disastrous pairing. We do not have to—”

 

“Hux, what are you talking about?” Kylo cut in, staring at the ginger in bewilderment, “ _Of course_ you and I are going to be together.”

 

It was Hux’s turn to do a double take, “What are you talking about?”

 

“Do you know how rare it is to find your soulmate?” Kylo asked. _One in a quadrillion,_ Hux’s mind supplied. “You and I aren’t ordinary people, Hux. This was not a coincidence. This was destiny. Fate. _I know it._ ”

 

Hux could hardly believe what he was hearing out of the other man’s mouth, “Ren, you just woke up. This is nonsense—”

 

Suddenly, Kylo stood up from his cot, face twisting into a grimace from movement. Hux attempted to verbally stop him but of course, he didn’t listen. He never did.

 

Stalking around the bed, Hux thought for a split second that Kylo was about to attack him. Instead, the Knight halted right in front of his seated form and then dropped down into a kneel.

 

Hux’s blood was rushing in his ears. Kylo was close, closer than ever before. He could practically feel the heat radiating off his body. This was not good, he had to get up, he had to push Kylo away, he had to _leave—_

 

“Imagine it. You and I together, instead of at odds.” Kylo spoke softly, “Imagine the things we could achieve. Imagine the places we could go.”

 

“Ren—” Hux tried to warn, pushing away fanciful thoughts.

 

“You see yourself on a throne. I can get you there. No more Resistance. No more Snoke. The galaxy could be ours.”

 

Hearing those thoughts taken straight from his mind sent a full-bodied jump through Hux.

 

“You shouldn’t say things like that to me, Ren,” Hux replied darkly, “It’s unfair.”

 

Kylo shook his head, “It’s not unfair when I can make it happen.”

 

Staring at the Knight just inches away from him, Hux desperately wanted to believe his words. In fact, his entire spirit yeared with the instinct to just give in. However, when things sounded too good, they usually were. Hux had learned throughout his life that there was almost always a catch.

 

“What do you want in return?” He questioned wearily.

 

Kylo’s answer came without hesitation, “Nothing. Just you.”

 

Hux was not sure if he could take any more shocks today. Just him, that’s all Kylo wanted? That couldn’t possibly be the truth— no one had ever wanted Hux.

 

“ _Why_?”

 

Kylo’s eyebrows came together in anguish that Hux was not expecting, “Because my grandfather lost his soulmate and it crushed him. For the rest of his life he was never the same, weakened beyond repair... I intend to never let that happen.”

 

Hux’s stomach dropped. This was personal for Kylo and it was _wrong_. Disaster was imminent. They would end up destroying the galaxy or themselves, likely both.

 

And yet, Hux found he didn’t care.

 

He had spent the last few days trying to tell himself differently but the truth was that everything had truly changed forever. From the moment his fingers had touched Kylo’s skin, a path was set. He was no longer the same man he was before and neither was Kylo. There was no going back.

 

“What you are proposing is… substantially dangerous, Ren,” Hux said slowly. This wasn’t just about them anymore. This involved the entire First Order. Snoke. The Resistance. The galaxy itself. It wouldn’t be easy.

 

Sensing his thoughts, Kylo put his hands over Hux’s, “We’ll let the past die. Kill it if we have to. This is who we were meant to be.”

 

Hux stared into Kylo’s eyes. They were deep brown, seemingly bottomless and inching closer.

 

It was true that he had never wanted a soulmate, but he never knew how much he _needed_ one. This moment was what his entire life had been building towards. Nothing had ever felt more _right_.

 

Hux pushed himself forward and met Kylo’s lips.

 

Behind his eyelids, fireworks exploded in burning shades of red.

 

It was beautiful.

 

 

 —

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Honestly, I can't thank y'all for sticking with me on this, this is undoubtedly the most stressful thing I've written but I was determined to finish it for you guys. Probably going to take a long break from writing now.
> 
> I tried to end it in a way that could be seen as leading to the events of The Last Jedi, but I'm not sure if I quite achieved it. Either way, I would love to know what your thoughts are! I adore every single comment and kudos, I really do. I hope you enjoyed this story.
> 
> You can come talk to me on tumblr or (my more active) twitter @infinitelykylo. Much love <3


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